Police: Mark Twain bronze plaque stolen from monument at New York gravesite is recovered

ELMIRA, N.Y. – Police say a bronze plaque stolen from Mark Twain's gravesite in upstate New York has been recovered in good condition.

In a statement to media, the Elmira Police Department said the 12-by-12-inch likeness of the American writer was recovered Saturday. The statement said details on how it was recovered and whether there will be any arrests won't be available until Monday.

The superintendent of Woodlawn Cemetery in Elmira said the plaque was likely stolen between Christmas and New Year's Day. It was one of two on a 12-foot-tall granite monument commissioned by Twain's daughter Clara. The other plaque, of Clara's husband, was untouched.

Twain, born Samuel Langhorne Clemens, grew up in Hannibal, Missouri. He summered in Elmira and is buried there in the family plot of his wife, Olivia Langdon.